5 Steps to Building Your Brand

A question we get asked frequently is “What is my BRAND?” Quite simply your brand is your mark. It is what sets you apart from the other products and services that competitor’s offer.

A company’s brand can be one of the most valuable assets when evaluating the worth of the business. Many businesses think of the brand as the tangible marketing elements that make up the image such as the logo, or the website. In reality the branding of a business is much more.

When developing a business’s brand there are 5 key steps to follow.

Step one – Naming your business. Make sure it ties together closely with the product or service you are providing. For Example how Band-Aid brand is to the adhesive bandages market. If your name is not in line with your product or service it can cause confusion.

Step two – Creating your mission statement. Your brand is essentially a promise to your customers. It will tell them what they can expect from your product or service. If your mission is unclear then how do you know who your consumer is and how to position your product or service in the correct market?

Step three – Developing Culture. Culture has been a popular buzzword over the past few years. But what is it exactly? On a basic level, your culture reflects the beliefs, values and behaviors of everyone associated with your product or service. The culture we create becomes our own unique DNA that we share between our employees and our customers.

Step four – Designing your Image. After the first 3 steps you are finally at a point where you can start developing the image of your brand. When developing your image make sure you hire a professional designer or marketing team to help you. The biggest mistake is trying to do it all yourself and using inadequate software. Remember this is the image of your product or service and you are going to spend a lot of money on marketing so make sure you have the correct design.

Step five – Marketing and promotion!!! This is the fun step. Getting your brand out to the public. When taking this step make sure you choose the correct medium for distributing your message. Know your customer, are they a younger tech driven crowd, or are they C level executives who listen to business radio.

The brand a company chooses not only sets them apart in their industry, but has further reaching implications. The way a brand is positioned determines their advertising and marketing strategies, the employees they hire, and the consumers they attract. In today’s world, with so much competition and market saturation, building a strong brand is more important than ever. With a solid brand, the sky is the limit.